Me and My Sceptile
by xxAnderxx
Summary: Ander is a recently-hired member of the HQ Lab's staff who was given a snag machine to replace Michael after he left on his own journey. After defeating Cipher, who was revived yet again, Ander decides to go on his own journey to Hoenn to finally have the chance to be like a normal trainer. While there he discovers a little pokemon that would become one of his closest friends.
1. Chapter 1

**Me and my Sceptile**

**Treecko**

What can I tell you about my Sceptile? Well I can tell you this much. He's been the best of friends and most loyal of companions. He's protected me from almost anything even at the risk of his own life. He has a bit of a rugged personality and isn't the easiest of pokemon to get along with when it comes to first impressions. However, if you knew his story, you'd never think he could have come so far. I'm going to tell you a little tale about how I met my green reptilian brother.

It all started while on my way to Hoenn. After defeating and shutting down Cipher, I decided to travel to other regions and finally get the chance to be like a normal trainer. Now Sceptile at the time was a Treecko. He was prepared along with the other two starter pokemon to meet the new rush of trainers to Hoenn since Orre was liberated. He climbed up to his perch and waited eagerly and with excitement to see who would be his new master.

The first trainer came in, looked at the three of them and picked Torchic. Treecko was a little discouraged but he knew that this could happen. So he waited for the next one. The next trainer came in, looked at all three of them, and picked Mudkip. Treecko sat there, brushed it off, and waited, and waited, and waited. After twenty different trainers, he officially began giving up hope. The scientists who ran the lab took him off the list of starters to be offered and decided to try something else.

They began comforting him and took him back to the reserve where they breed and raise Treeckos and the other starters to give to new trainers where they fed him vitamins. They fed him doses of Carbos, HP UP, and other medicines of that sort to make him powerful. It seemed to be working. His attacks were hitting harder and he even seemed to be happier. After some time, he was ready to be presented to the new trainers as a choice again. He went back and took his perch but yet again he was never chosen. Almost without hope, he walked out of the lab and back to the reserve.

The scientists brought him a bowl with his food for him to eat. He began eating but bit down on something hard and round. He reached into his mouth and pulled out one of the pills. He looked at it and recognized it instantly. He was confused as to why they were giving him the medicines so he went to the lab to talk to the scientists but when he looked through the glass, he saw something that crushed him. Another Treecko had taken his place and to his despair, was chosen. He dropped the pill and decided to stay on the reserve to be among his own kind.

He didn't really get along with any of the other Treeckos or Grovyles except for one. He had this female Treecko who came to him one day and spent time with him. The two were best of friends. They would climb trees, play tag, splash around in the water, and cuddle together. Everything finally seemed to be going well until another jealous Treecko decided to step in. The two were playing in the forest when he confronted and assaulted Treecko. The two fought but Treecko was defeated and chased off the reserve.

Meanwhile at the port, I had just arrived in Hoenn in the afternoon and was directed to walk to the Pokemon Lab to receive my starter pokemon. I was overjoyed to finally be like a real trainer and pick my own pokemon. As I was walking along the pathway, I noticed something in the bushes. I went to investigate and saw a Treecko running in my direction. He bumped into my leg and fell down. I looked at him and decided to help him out.

"Hey little guy," I told him. "Are you okay? That was a hard knock."

I reached out to help him up but he brushed my hand away. I noticed he was covered in scrapes and bruises and was clearly hurting but not from the physical injuries. He was hurting emotionally as well.

I got down on one knee, helped him up to his feet, and asked him, "What's wrong little guy? You look hurt."

He looked at the ground and started crying. I felt bad for him. He was clearly very hurt by something. So I asked him a question.

"Are you one of the three starter pokemon?"

He looked at me and pointed to the lab. He spoke in his usual dialect but I was able to understand what he said. I studied with Professor Krane about pokemon and I learned how to understand their speech and I can have a fluent conversation with them. When he says "Treecko" I heard words. So he began speaking to me.

"The other two pokemon are waiting for you over there."

"Aren't you one of them?" I asked him.

He began crying and he looked away from me. I put my hand on his shoulder and asked him what was wrong. He wiped the tears from his eyes and began to speak to me.

"I'm sorry. I'm just not the pokemon you're looking for. Even after so many vitamins I'm still weak compared to the others. Even another Treecko got chosen but not me. I'm just the one that never got picked."

I felt so bad for him. I could see the drive and the determination in him. He had so much to offer. He had so much potential but no one even cared to look at him. They labeled him as weaker because of his type and never got the chance to really know him. I wiped the tears from his eyes and I told him something that changed his life forever.

"Treecko, I choose you."

He looked at me in disbelief.

"Really?" he replied.

"Yes, I pick you."

He was overjoyed and put on a big smile. He rushed to me and gave me a big hug. He thanked me over and over. I hugged him back and then looked at him.

"Give me your hand Treecko."

He put his little hand in mine and I held it up.

"I'm going to make you a promise." I told him. "No matter what happens, no matter the situation, no matter what anyone says or does, I will never abandon you. I will stay by you and help you and together we'll conquer the Pokemon League."

He looked at me and nodded. I picked him up and carried him back to the lab to get him healed up. He was a tender little thing. He nuzzled up to me and held on to me as I walked there. When I went in, I declared to the scientists that I chose Treecko and asked them to heal him. They gave him back to me good as new and handed me a pokedex and five pokeballs.

I walked out and decided to find a clearing in the forest to set up a small camp. I started up a fire and cooked up a soup for Treecko and me to share. I left him to sit around the fire and began setting up the tent. I put up a bed for myself and a small bed for Treecko. I went back outside to call him but he was already asleep. I walked up to him, picked him up, and carried him to the tent.

I put him in his little bed and then lay down in mine to go to sleep. As I closed my eyes, I felt something small against my side. I turned and saw Treecko cuddling next to me. I pet his head, wished him goodnight, and went to sleep. This is where our friendship began. I looked at him while he slept and I knew that this Treecko and I were going to do incredible things together. I knew this Treecko would one day be stronger than I could ever imagine.


	2. Chapter 2

**Grovyle**

After defeating Roxanne and Brawly I was heading on my way to Mauville City. Treecko had been growing much stronger since I first got him. We've grown closer and we were getting ready to enter the city. Along the way a trainer challenged me to a battle. By this time, the team was already beginning to come together. I had Hariyama with me, Gardevoir came with me too. The battle started and it was a Voltorb going against Treecko. We beat it with relative ease and went on to defeat the rest of the trainer's pokemon as well. By the time the battle had ended, something marvelous had happened.

Treecko's body began glowing and he began growing. His arms grew longer along with his legs and his neck. His body got thicker and he grew leaves on his arms and on his head. By the time the process was completed, Treecko had now become a Grovyle. I was so excited when I saw him. He began looking at himself almost in amazement at how much his body had changed. I told him something to help him understand what had happened.

"Treecko, you're a Grovyle now," I said. "I'm proud of you buddy; you did it"

He looked towards the forest and ran into the trees. I ran after him and called his name but he was gone. He continued running and rushing through the bushes. Eventually after about an hour or so, he got to the Pokemon Reserve to show his old friend his new form. He looked around but didn't find her. Instead he found his rival again. Grovyle knew that he had become stronger so he decided to stand and fight. The two of them went at it, trading blows, slashing at one another, and even biting one another. Eventually Grovyle got blind-sided and fell to the ground. He tried to get up but got a hard kick to the face.

He got up and decided to run back to Mauville, embarrassed after being beaten again. By the time night fall had come, I decided to set the campsite up. I sat down and had some food with my other pokemon when suddenly Grovyle emerged from the bushes. He looked battered and beat up. I ran to him to see if he was okay.

"Grovyle, you're hurt," I said but he just looked away. "Let me see."

I tried to get a better look at his face because it had some bad bruising but he just pulled his head away. He sat on the bench in front of the fire next to me but didn't say a word. I tried to give him some food but he just turned it down. I went to the tent to head to bed and turned to check on him but he just looked away. I began wondering what went so wrong that he could treat me like this. What happened to him in that forest?

While I was in the tent I kept looking back. I was so worried about his safety. By the time morning came along, I had packed up the tent and decided to train against some of the trainers around Mauville City to prepare for the Gym. I got into a battle with a trainer who sent out a Magnemite first. I sent out Hariyama who made quick work of it with a single Arm Thrust.

"Whoa, your Hariyama is tough," he said with amazement.

"Thanks, I've trained him as hard as I could so that he could be strong, no matter the challenger," I replied.

"Well let's see how well he handles my strongest; go Magneton!"

He looked to his Magneton with confidence and said, "Magneton, use Thunderbolt!"

Magneton began charging a surge of electricity and fired it at Hariyama. It hit him hard leaving him badly damaged. I asked him if he wanted to go on and he said yes.

"Ok then Hariyama," I said, "Use Arm Thrust one more time!"

Hariyama rushed at Magneton and slammed it once then once more but it wasn't enough to beat it.

"Magneton, end this with a Thunderbolt!"

Magneton charged a large amount of power and fired a surge of electricity that was just enough to knock Hariyama down and out. I decided to see if a battle would help cheer Grovyle up so I decided to send him out.

"Alright Grovyle, now use Leaf Blade!" I shouted.

Grovyle looked at back at me, lay down on the ground, and willingly and blatantly defied me.

"Grovyle come on!" I shouted.

He looked back at me, closed his eyes and taunted Magneton. The trainer commanded his Magneton and gave it his orders.

"Magneton, use Sonic Boom!"

Magneton fired out a pulse of sound that burst with a loud boom that irritated Grovyle's ear drums. I tried to give him instructions again.

"Grovyle, try using Absorb to get some health back," I said.

He used Leaf Blade instead and rushed at the Magneton with a huge burst of speed. He hit spot-on and Magneton crashed to the ground, beaten. I was surprised as was my opponent. He withdrew his Magneton and began to speak.

"Well I can certainly say I wasn't expecting that outcome," he said jokingly. "Your Grovyle is very powerful but it looks like he has some obedience issues. Have you done anything to him to trigger this behavior?" he asked me.

"No, I didn't do anything to hurt him," I replied.

"Hmm maybe he's just one of those defiant types," he responded. "If that's the case, he won't be easy to train."

Grovyle got aggressive towards the trainer for talking about him and rushed at the trainer with a Leaf Blade. He screamed and put his arms up to cover himself. I ran as fast as I could to stop him from getting hurt.

"Grovyle stop!" I shouted.

I grabbed him by his arm and his neck and shoved him down. He started growling, used Leaf Blade, and rushed at me. I screamed out loud and pushed the other trainer out of the way. Gardevoir heard my scream and burst out of her pokeball. She used Psychic on Grovyle and pushed him back a few feet. Afterwards, she put tremendous psychic force on Grovyle and began pushing down to pin him on the ground. Grovyle was flailing and growling angrily but he couldn't break out.

"Gardevoir let him go," I told her.

She looked at me in shock.

"We don't turn on our own," I said.

I looked at Grovyle with disbelief and pain. I didn't feel angry at Grovyle; I felt betrayed. I barely recognized the Treecko I met a month ago.

"What is wrong with you?" I asked him. "Is that how you repay me for picking you? What did I ever do to you that would make you hate me this much?"

I couldn't believe that he could do something like that. I felt like he would never care about me.

"What's worse is that I would never hurt you," I told him.

He didn't say anything. He just got up and ran off. I turned to the trainer and apologized for Grovyle's actions. He looked to me and began speaking.

"I'm sorry about your Grovyle. It must be difficult raising him."

I replied in a sad tone, "He didn't always used to be like that. He used to be very kind but now he's just stubborn."

He replied, "I sure hope that you two can work out your issue; he seems like a very powerful battler."

"He really is," I responded. "You should've seen how amazing he looked when he fought against Roxanne's Nosepass. He practically swept her whole team on his own."

The trainer was amazed when I told him that. He asked me another question.

"Did he go through any kind of hardship?"

"Well, he was never picked by about twenty different trainers and was even attacked and chased off the reserve by a rival Treecko. He was so hurt and felt like no one really cared about him, but I saw something in him. I still do. I just wish he would listen to me because I want the best for Grovyle and I care about him."

Tears started running down my face but I wiped them quickly. The trainer gave me a pat me on the back and wished me the best. He thanked me once again for saving him and went about his business. I went back to the Pokemon Center and healed up Hariyama and then decided to have some lunch. After Hariyama, Gardevoir, and I finished our food, we decided it was time to challenge Mauville City's gym. I returned them both to their pokeballs and set out to the gym.

As I was about to walk in, Grovyle approached me. He looked at me and told me to put him back in his pokeball. I sighed and withdrew him without a word. I entered the gym and battled all of the trainers in it. I decided not to use Grovyle on any of them since I figured he wouldn't really help very much. After they were all beaten, only the leader remained. I approached him and prepared for the battle.

He was an older man with a rather chubby body. He had a very jolly smile and white hair and a beard. He was wearing a light brown jacket and beige pants. He raised his arms and began to speak.

"Welcome young challenger!" he said with enthusiasm. "I trust you found the gym trainers to be not much of a challenge. However, perhaps I will be. I am Wattson, leader of the Mauville city gym. Now then young one, let's have an electrifying battle!"

He laughed joyfully then he sent out his first pokemon.

"Go, Magnemite!" he said as he threw his pokeball.

Magnemite came out of its pokeball and awaited its instruction.

I began thinking to myself then I knew which pokemon to start off with.

"Let's do this Hariyama!" I shouted as I threw out my pokeball.

Hariyama burst out and slammed on the ground. He took his stance and prepared himself for battle.

"Magnemite, use Shock Wave!" shouted Wattson.

Magnemite charged up a surge of electricity then fired it at Hariyama.

"Hariyama quickly use Fake Out and bypass its Shock Wave!" I exclaimed.

Hariyama rushed at Magnemite with a burst of speed and slapped it with his large hands causing Shock Wave to be nullified and causing it to flinch.

"We aren't down quite yet," Wattson said. "Now Magnemite, use Shock Wave!"

Magnemite fired out Shock Wave and it hit Hariyama directly. Hariyama hunched over slightly from the shock but quickly recovered.

"Hariyama, now it's time to strike back; use Arm Thrust!" I told him.

Hariyama ran at Magnemite and slammed it once, twice, and then thrice. With the third hit, Magnemite was defeated and crashed to the ground.

Wattson laughed and then spoke, "Very well done. That was quite the impressive display."

I looked at him and responded, "Trust me; there's a lot more where that came from."

"This battle isn't over yet!" he exclaimed. "Now for my second pokemon, go Voltorb!"

Voltorb bounced out of its pokeball and awaited its orders.

"Now for a little bit of fireworks," he said, "Voltorb use Self-Destruct!"

Voltorb glowed brightly then jumped into the air and released a tremendous burst from its body that resulted in a massive explosion. When the smoke cleared, both Hariyama and Voltorb were down.

"What was that?" I shouted in disbelief.

Wattson laughed then replied, "I had to make sure the biggest problem was taken care of. Now that Hariyama has been dealt with, my next pokemon should have no worries."

Wattson threw out his pokeball and out came his final and most powerful pokemon, Magneton.

I sent out Gardevoir and waited for my opportunity to attack.

"Gardevoir use Psychic!" I said.

Gardevoir's eyes glowed brightly then she released a force of psychic energy that hit Magneton but unfortunately it didn't do much to it.

Wattson laughed then spoke, "It appears that you may be out of tricks for this battle. However, I still have a few left; Magneton, go now and use Thunder Wave!"

Magneton fired a small pulse of electricity that hit Gardevoir and paralyzed her making it very difficult for her to move. I tried giving her orders but she couldn't keep focused and flinched.

"We have her where we want her Magneton, use Supersonic!"

Magneton separated briefly then reformed itself making a loud sound from the crashing impact that rattled Gardevoir's ears and left her disoriented.

"Gardevoir, snap out of it and use Psychic."I told her.

She tried to use Psychic again but couldn't focus and the force backfired on her causing her to hurt herself.

"Alright then Magneton, let's finish this with a Shock Wave!" Wattson said.

Magneton fired a pulse of electricity that hit Gardevoir head on causing huge damage to her. I tried telling her to use Psychic again but she couldn't concentrate well enough from both the paralysis and the confusion and she hit herself with her own move causing herself to faint. I was totally stunned. In one fell swoop Wattson evened up the battle. I began to shudder at what would happen next because the last pokemon on my team was Grovyle. Despite that being the case, I clenched his pokeball, readied myself, and sent him out.

"Ok Grovyle, you're up next," I said as I threw the pokeball.

Grovyle came out with his arms crossed, lay down on the ground, and decided to relax. I began getting agitated and I shouted at him.

"Come on Grovyle, please not here; this battle is important to me," I said.

He looked back at me and closed his eyes, shook his head, then zoned me out.

"Unbelievable, you won't even look at me. What's the point, you obviously don't care anymore," I said in a sad voice.

I let go of his pokeball and let it drop to the floor. He turned back to look at me and then got hit by Magneton's Sonic Boom. He began getting up off the floor. I stood there looking down at him. He looked up to me and growled.

I looked at him with a sad look on my face and spoke, "So that's just it huh? You don't even care about me anymore. Honestly, Grovyle I'm not mad at you."

I took some steps back and spread my arms out.

"Come at me. If attacking me makes you happy then go ahead."

I took the belt that held my pokeballs and threw it to the side of the gym. His growl faded and he looked at me with a confused look on his face.

"Grovyle you can hit me, ignore me, and disrespect me but I will never do it back to you. I still care about you and believe that you're still that nice Treecko because I haven't lost any faith in you even if you lost it in yourself."

I turned back and walked out of the gym. A couple tears fell from my eyes and hit the floor. I felt so hurt but I just had to believe that he's still in there somewhere. Evolving changes a lot of things about a pokemon but their hearts still stay the same. Something had hurt him. I wasn't sure what it was or how severe but he's clearly suffering from it. Wattson looked at me walk out and then spoke to Grovyle.

"Wow, you don't even realize how lucky you are do you? That boy loves you so much, Grovyle. I don't know what happened between you but are you really just going to let him go like that?"

Grovyle began looking sad. He closed his eyes and remembered what it was like when he was a Treecko and realized how much I did really care about him. He began to feel full of regret and ran after me. I was already outside. I was about to walk away from the gym when I felt a hand on my shoulder stop me. I turned back and saw Grovyle standing behind me.

"What is it?" I asked him.

He began speaking to me and of course I understood every word he said.

"Ander, please just wait a minute. Look, I know I haven't been nice to you recently, and I'm sorry about that. It's just that um have you ever been in a situation when you want to prove yourself to someone but you just mess up? I just don't know to explain it."

I interrupted him for a minute and said, "You don't have to explain it to me Grovyle. If you don't feel comfortable telling me what else goes on in your life then I won't force you to."

He continued speaking, "Ander, why did you pick me? What do I really have to offer? I'm not as strong as Hariyama or as intelligent as Garevoir and all I've done is let you down. You put so much time into me and I've never even produced any real results. I wish I could find a way to thank you but I can't. I can see that you care about me but I'm just not good enough to be in your team. To be honest, the reason I don't battle is because I don't feel like I'm getting any stronger. What's the point of all that battling if it just amounts to nothing? Also every time I get hurt or I'm in a struggle you always pull me out of it. I just hate that I can't solve my problems on my own."

I put my hand on his shoulder and spoke to him, "Grovyle, I'm not solving your problems for you. You're too hard on yourself. You haven't even reached your final evolution; you know that right? Just be patient, your strength will come in time. If you don't have any faith in yourself then put your faith in me. I'll help you no matter what. That's what trainers are for. You just have to keep trying. After some time, your strength will definitely show. Don't try so hard to impress me. Just give it everything you got and I'll be happy with that. Once I know you did your best, I'll be just fine. You don't need to push so hard to try to thank me. Seeing you happy and watching you evolve is thanks enough."

He looked down, closed his eyes and pressed his head against my chest.

"I'm sorry Ander," he said as he hugged me.

I hugged him back and replied, "It's going to be just fine Grovyle. All we need to do is work together. You keep putting in your effort and just watch. You'll be shocked when you see how much potential you have."

He looked up to me and smiled.

"There it is," I told him.

"What?" he asked.

"Your smile, you have a really nice smile you know. It's very inviting," I responded.

He chuckled and scratched his head with slight embarrassment.

"Ander," he said, "I want a second chance. I want to help you beat that gym."

I answered him, "Well, we can't do that now; Garevoir and Hariyama are beat up and seeing how unprepared I was, I need to train some more. After a few more trainers, we'll be ready for the rematch. So Grovyle," I extended my arm out, "partners?"

He smiled, put his hand in mine, and responded, "Partners."

The next few days, we trained vigorously. We battled trainers, wild pokemon, and even went as far as to do some shopping to keep ourselves in prime condition. Grovyle, Hariyama, and Gardevoir gave me their one hundred percent and we were sure that we could take on the gym now. I was impressed with Hariyama and Gardevoir but above all, Grovyle was becoming nicer towards me and them. He sat and joked with us around the campfire, helped out with simple tasks, and above all was becoming loving again like he used to be. It renewed a fire in me that I almost lost a couple of days ago.

I finally felt confident going back in that gym and asking for my rematch. I turned back quickly to look back at my pokemon and they all nodded in agreement. I gave one last look to Grovyle and he smiled at me. After getting the encouragement I needed along with their cooperation, I knew this would be a good battle. I withdrew all of them to their respective pokeballs then marched in through the doors.

Wattson was waiting for me already and was ecstatic to see me walk in with a more confident approach.

He smiled with anticipation for the battle and spoke, "Well look at you; you look ready as ever."

I returned his look with great zeal and replied, "Trust me Wattson, this really will be electrifying."

He laughed with joy then sent out his Magnemite again.

I sent out Hariyama and the battle begun.

"Hariyama use Fake Out and make sure he doesn't make a move," I said.

Hariyama dashed to Magnemite and slapped it hard causing it to flinch.

"Magnemite don't give up just yet," Wattson said, "hit him with Shock Wave!"

Magnemite charged up electricity and fired it out hitting Hariyama hard.

Hariyama got back up and stood firm.

"Wow it appears as though Hariyama has certainly had some more training put into him," Wattson said.

"Trust me that's just the opening act; Hariyama use Bulk Up!" I shouted.

Hariyama braced himself then flexed his muscles making himself stronger and more physically resilient.

Wattson seemed slightly confused and spoke, "Why would you raise your defense? Shock Wave isn't a physical attack. Anyway, Magnemite use Shock Wave again!"

Magnemite shot another Shock Wave at Hariyama hitting him again. He shook it off and remained unfazed.

"Hariyama now use Arm Thrust!" I shouted.

"No!" scream Wattson as he heard the attack that was called out.

With Bulk Up raising Hariyama's attack, this Arm Thrust would hit exceptionally hard and with that he hit once then twice and Magnemite was down.

"Ah how could I have not seen that coming?" Wattson asked with amazement.

"I told you I would mix things up this time around," I said with enthusiasm.

To that Wattson laughed then spoke, "You weren't kidding. That Bulk Up certainly will make me have to find a way around Hariyama, but trust me I will not give up. Go Magneton!"

Magneton came out and awaited further instruction.

"Now Magneton, use Supersonic!" Wattson shouted.

Magneton separated itself then reformed making a loud sound that dazed Hariyama and left him in a state of confusion. Hariyama tried to focus for his next attack but ended up hurting himself.

"Magneton use Thunder Wave," Wattson ordered.

Magneton fired a pulse of electricity that crippled Hariyama bringing his movement down severely and adding to the problem even more. However, something happened that Wattson didn't see coming. Hariyama got up and had a massive surge of energy flow through him making him even stronger than he was prior. It was his ability Guts which makes him even stronger if he is paralyzed, burned, or poisoned.

"Got you now Wattson," I said with confidence.

"Not quite actually; you see if Hariyama hurts himself now, with his attack increased it will do even more damage," Wattson replied.

Magneton used Shock Wave and hit Hariyama but he was still standing firm. Hariyama tried to move but as Wattson predicted, he hurt himself with some pretty big damage. Magneton once again used Shock Wave hitting Hariyama and wearing him down badly. I began getting worried because his Magneton was still healthy and strong and my last two pokemon wouldn't be able to really hurt it.

I got fired up and shouted at Hariyama, "Hariyama don't let this stop you; hit it with Arm Thrust!"

Hariyama writhed from the paralysis and his still unstable mind but he fought through it and thrust out his arm. There was a loud crash and the wall broke with Magneton embedded inside it. Hariyama pulled it out, threw it on the floor, and continued to hit it twice, then thrice, and it was over. Magneton had fallen leaving Wattson in utter shock.

I was overwhelmed with joy and jumped up, "Yes! Hariyama you did it!"

I ran up to him and gave him a pat on the back he looked back at me and despite the pain he was feeling, and gave me a thumbs up. I knew keeping Hariyama out would mean he would faint so I withdrew him and sent out Gardevoir instead.

"I must certainly say I'm impressed. I wasn't expecting Hariyama to make it honestly," Wattson said. "However, we are still not broken and I won't give up just yet."

With that, he threw out his next pokeball and sent out Voltorb.

"This is not over yet; Voltorb use Self Destruct!" he shouted.

I was stunned and shouted out in confusion, "What?"

Voltorb unleashed its explosion and made Gardevoir faint instantly.

"I don't understand; that was your last pokemon," I said with confusion.

"When did I ever say it was my last pokemon? Now Ander, let me show you my real final pokemon! Go now Manectric!"

Wattson threw out his pokeball and it opened with sparks of electricity. When it cleared, Manectric stood proudly teeming with lightning and roared.

"I must commend you though Ander, very few of my opponents ever make it past Magneton and fewer still ever get to see Manectric but unfortunately this is where I say this battle may very well be over." Wattson said with a laugh.

"It is far from over," I said as I looked at Grovyle's pokeball in my hand. "You have your best pokemon and I have mine."

I took out my last pokeball and looked at it with hope. I threw it and sent out Grovyle. He came out of his pokeball and stood up with confidence.

"Okay Grovyle, we got this battle," I said to him with a nod.

He smirked confidently and nodded in reply. It seemed as though for the first time in a long time we would actually battle as a team again.

"Ok Grovyle let's get this started with a Leaf Blade!" I shouted.

He rushed at the Manectric and cut through him with his powerful attack at blazing speed. I felt so happy to see him finally listening to me. Manectric was reeling but not down just yet.

"That is quite the display of power," Wattson stated. "Now it's my turn; Manectric use Spark!"

Manectric cloaked himself in electricity and dashed at Grovyle with quite an impressive speed himself. He slammed into Grovyle leaving him covered in sparks. Grovyle tried to stand back up but I noticed a hitch in his movement. He seemed to be straining himself just to stand and was very sluggish. It only took a short while for me to notice that he was actually paralyzed. He couldn't muster enough strength to move and remained totally immobilized.

"It seems your Grovyle is having some trouble. I must say he does seem to have a newly kindled fire in his eyes but I don't think it will be enough. Manectric, use Shock Wave!"

Manectric charged up power then fired a stream of electricity at Grovyle that hit him head on and left him writhing in pain. I began losing hope until something unexpected happened. He got back on his feet despite the paralysis and began glowing with a greenish aura. The leaves on his arms grew sharper and more defined and he had this fierce look in his eyes. It was his ability called Overgrow; it makes his grass moves stronger in times of desperation. He looked back at me and nodded; right then I knew he and I were in perfect unison.

"Ok Grovyle let's do this, use Leaf Blade!"

He leapt off the ground into the air and came down on Manectric's back with a powerful Leaf Blade. When it was over, he was panting heavily but Manectric was on the ground, beaten. I ran up to him and helped him get back on his feet.

"Grovyle, you're absolutely amazing," I told him with a smile. "Thank you."

He smiled happily and said, "You're very welcome, Ander."

Wattson withdrew his Manectric and smiled.

"You two make quite the team," he said. "I'd say you've earned this."

He put the badge in my hand along with the TM Shock Wave.

"I think you two will make it far if you keep working together and as for you my green friend, you have a great friend standing beside you. Trust him because he can help you accomplish so much more than you could possibly imagine."

Grovyle smiled and nodded his head. I thanked Wattson for the battle and we walked out of the gym.

I put the badge in Grovyle's hand and said, "You earned this buddy. I told you you're strong. Thank you for helping me out and remember if you ever need help with anything or need someone to talk to, I'll be here for you. After all, we're a team."

Grovyle smiled and we walked on to Lavaridge Town.


	3. Chapter 3

**Sceptile**

After our battle in Mauville City, Grovyle and I had become best of friends again. It was great to see him finally going back to his old self. He was friendly, loving, and just as fun as he used to be. There were times where I thought we could never be this close again. However, our friendship isn't the only thing that grew stronger. We trained together vigorously. I ensured that he was in prime physical form and we defeated the Gym Leaders Norman, Flannery, and Winona. Shortly afterwards, Grovyle underwent his second and final evolution. He grew taller, his legs got longer and thicker, his neck got more slender, the leaf on his head receded completely, and he traded his one large leaf blade for two. He wasn't a Grovyle anymore; now he was a Sceptile.

"Wow, you did it buddy. Now you're finally at your full power. How does it feel?" I said to him.

He took some time to admire himself and then stared at me for a few seconds. He ran in my direction but instead of running to me, he ran passed me and headed back into the forest yet again. He ran and ran for hours until he reached the reserve and began to look for his old friend again. She had become a Sceptile as well in their time away from each other and he was overjoyed to see her new form. He ran up to her and the two greeted each other with smiles. She admired how much he had grown and marveled at his new-found power. It was short-lived however when Sceptile's old rival showed up. Now a full grown male Sceptile as well, he was prepared to assert his dominance but Sceptile was determined that this time he would win. The two growled fiercely before rushing at each other and locking into furious combat once again.

They went back and forth with unrelenting force delivering one slash, kick, scratch, and bite after another. They went at it for almost ten minutes before both fell back to regain momentum. Sceptile would not back down this time. He rushed at his rival with a Leaf Blade on his arm and a fire in his heart. He ran through the opposing Sceptile before pouncing on him and using his body to pin him down. He raised his arm to deliver the final blow before glancing to his right and seeing his friend looking at him with shock and fear in her eyes. He lowered his arm and climbed off of his now beaten opponent. He ran to her but she turned away. He tried to reason with his friend but she turned him down saying maybe he wasn't the man she thought he was. She added to that by saying that he was just as savage as the other males on the reserve. Those words shattered Sceptile. He whimpered sadly begging her to turn around but she walked off without a glance.

Heart-broken and shattered Sceptile ran away from the reserve for good vowing never to return seeing as now there was nothing for him there. After roughly four hours I finally saw him come back.

"Where have you been?" I said with concern. "Oh my goodness, what happened to you?"

I ran to him and was astonished at all the cuts, bruises, and other injuries he had sustained. Sceptile took a quick glance at me before turning to the right and walking away.

"Hold on, where are you going?" I asked him. "You're hurt; you need to let me treat those wounds."

He ignored me and kept on walking. I ran up to him and grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Hey! I'm talking to you!" I shouted.

I went silent at the sound of him growling. I took my hand off of him and began to speak to him in a more calm voice.

"Don't start that again Sceptile. We already got over this remember? Please just let me help you."

I reached for him again, but I could never have anticipated what would happen next. He turned around with a raised Leaf Blade and struck a painful blow. I screamed out loud as blood sprayed out of my arm. The pain was excruciating and my arm was now crimson from the steady stream that gushed from it. I looked up to Sceptile whose expression quickly changed from angry to almost sorrowful. He took some steps back looking at the blood on his hands before running off in another direction. Hariyama, Gardevoir, and now Salamence, ran up to me to make sure I was alright. I told them that I would go after Sceptile myself despite my injury. I tore off the lower part of my now ripped sleeve and used it as a bind to stop the bleeding. The wound wasn't too deep thankfully, but it was still a nasty cut.

I braved myself then walked into the forest where he ran. I followed the trail of blood until it disappeared. I took some more steps forward before coming to a clearing. It was a cliff hanging over the ocean. The moon was full on a star-filled night and was quite beautiful and in the midst of it all, I saw Sceptile sitting on the edge of the cliff. I heard sniffling and decided to walk up to him. He looked to me with tear-filled eyes as I sat down next to him. I reached out to him with my good arm but he drew back as if bracing for a punch or slap.

"It's alright Sceptile; I'm not going to hurt you," I told him in a soft voice. "What's wrong with you buddy, hmm? Why are you so sad?"

He let out a deep sigh before wiping his eyes and began to speak to me, "Ander do you know what it's like to feel like less than what you are?"

"Of course, everyone has those feelings from time to time," I replied.

"What is it you see in me Ander? You always said that you saw something in me that I don't understand, but what could it be? I'm not the strongest and I'm not the smartest. I'm just me, but for some reason you believe in me. Why?" He said.

"Do you really want to know why?" I said, "I believe in you because you're special. Hariyama may be strong, Gardevoir may be smart, but they don't have half the determination you have. No matter how many times I've seen you get beaten down you get back up until your body can't keep up with you anymore. You have more heart than all of them combined and you're the sweetest pokemon I've ever met. Trust me Sceptile; you're different and there is no other starter I would have chosen." I told him.

"I only wish she thought the same," he said in a sad voice.

"Who are you talking about?" I asked.

"There was a girl, another Treecko, I used to spend time with every day while I lived on the reserve. She was the closest thing that I had to a friend before I met you. We were inseparable as kids. When I evolved into a Grovyle, I began to develop feelings for her that I didn't used to have. It was an attraction that I couldn't explain. When I evolved again into a Sceptile, these feelings grew even stronger like an urge I couldn't fight. I thought that by evolving and becoming stronger I could impress her, but…" He paused for a moment.

"But what?" I asked him.

"It didn't work. After everything I did for her she turned me down. She didn't even let me explain. She just walked off and left me standing there. She must've seen what the twenty trainers saw: a weak little creature that could never learn to fend for himself." He said with tears in his eyes.

Sceptile lowered his head and closed eyes before continuing to sob. I felt so horrible for him. Now I understood everything and it all became clear to me.

I called out to him, "Sceptile look at me."

He turned his head and looked me in the eye with a sad look on his face.

I put my hand on his cheek and spoke, "Don't you ever tell yourself that you're weak. Those trainers and that girl may not have seen the greatness in you, but I do and I always will. I don't care what people think, what they say, or what they'll do; I will always see the strength that's inside you because I found it in myself. I don't have your abilities, your speed, or your agility, but I have something that people could never take from me, determination. I fought on despite the odds when no one else would because I wanted my home to be free from evil. I never had anyone at my side with me, but you do. I went through this struggle just as you are now: the thought that maybe you can't do this after all or that you're not good enough. If I did it alone, then I know you can do it with my help. I will always be here for you Sceptile because that is what friends are for and you are my best friend no matter what happened between us."

He began speaking again, "But what about the cut?"

"I would take a thousand more than see you like this. The pain I'm feeling is nothing compared to the pain you feel every day." I replied.

He opened his mouth in amazement at what I was saying. He looked me in eyes and smiled. I returned the favor with a smile of my own. We got off the ground and stood up.

I put my hands on his shoulders, look into his eyes, and said, "Sceptile I'm going to repeat the words I told you on the day we first met. No matter what happens, I will never give up on you. An inferiority complex is a powerful thing. It affects you mentally and physically and is like a knot that is tightened over time. However, if you put your faith in me, I will help you untie it until you finally have the strength to believe in yourself and see the gifts you have."

He closed his eyes and rested his head on my shoulder.

He spoke to me again saying, "Thank you Ander for everything you've done for me."

Ever since then, Sceptile and I trained harder. We challenged the Hoenn Elite Four, battled Cipher time and time again, and travelled to other regions. We've been friends for over four years now and I believe we will be for many more. Sceptile may not have been the strongest, the smartest, or the best, but he's the greatest friend I could have ever asked for and will always be the most amazing pokemon to me.


End file.
